HNRS 3203 - Utopian and Dystopian Fiction

At least since Thomas More’s celebrated work the idea of a utopia simultaneously conjures up two distinct meanings: first, as an imaginative idea of an idealized community in which humankind, having seemingly attained sufficient mastery or even perfection, seeks to create a rational, equitable and just society offering genuine human fellowship and solidarity; and second, as an utter impossibility, as “no place,” for as the “good place,” the imaginative ideal seeking the common good, is yet to be realized, and perhaps is inherently unattainable, utopia is simultaneously “nowhere.” Over time, these twin meanings of utopia, meanings purposefully, ironically and artistically joined in More’s book, separate into two distinct and immensely popular traditions: the utopian novel, culminating in 19th century works such as Edward Bellamy’s Looking Backward and carried forward into the next century by Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s Herland, and the dystopian novel, prefigured by Dostoevsky’s Notes from Underground and The Legend of the Grand Inquisitor (found in The Brothers Karamazov) and most famously expressed in novels by Zamyatin, Huxley and Orwell. Whatever qualities of scientific invention, fantasy and imagination are present in our readings, we find that the utopian imagination expresses very real and human desires that arise from a given author’s discontents with his or her historical circumstances. We will trace the development of utopian desire giving way to dystopian discontent through a chronological reading of our novels and selected films, taking pains to grasp each work within both its historical and literary context as well as its ongoing relevance to our contemporary lives. The course seeks to foster enhanced critical thinking, reading and interpretive skills as well as to provide students with the opportunity to improve in the conception, writing and revision of their critical essays.

Credits: 4 hours

Restrictions: Restricted to Lee Honors College students only.

Notes: This course satisfies General Education Area II: Humanities.